I have a few questions since I'm new to betta care. My older siblings had fish when they were teenagers but actually owning and caring for one on my own is all new to me. I've been living on google and betta forums since I bought him.

I'm going to the store tomorrow to buy some supplies and I have some major important questions before I go. I'll be going to Petsmart and maybe Petco, so any recommendations from there would be much appreciated.

I'm going to need a tank. right now Ray is swimming happily in a one gallon bowl that is probably a huge improvement to the little cup he was in at Walmart but I want to get him something bigger with a filter and heater. I've found a few tanks I like on Petsmart's website but the reviews on there are kind of mixed and I'm not sure if the one I have my eye on is the right choice. If some of you guys could recommend tanks you've been successful with that would be great. I'm not sure how strong is too strong for a filter, since bettas apparently don't like a current.

Heater recommendations are definitely welcome too since I don't really know what I'm looking for in the grand scheme of things.

Next up, I think Ray may or may not have fin hyperplasia? Like I said, I'm new to fish so I'm going completely off of google on this one. It would be really helpful to have someone to talk to directly about all of this. Basically, I didn't notice while I was at the store, his left fin is kind of protruding a some and seems kind of stuck open. So far as I can tell, this can be fixed by adding some kind of aquarium salt to his water. Explanations on that would be great.

Also I've seen a lot of people say that bettas don't really like tropical fish flakes. That was what I bought before researching and he seems to like them just fine since whenever I drop a flake in he attacks it in seconds. Are they unhealthy for him or are they fine as long as he eats them?

And: live plants. I see all over that live plants are good for adding oxygen to the water and for hiding places for bettas. Where would I find these, how do I put them in a tank, and how do I take care of/maintain them if I need to?

Last of all! I am aware that I need to replace about 1/4 of the tank water every few days but do I need to empty out the tank and deep clean it at all if I have a filter?

Right now Petsmart has an awesome deal on a 5.5 gallon Topfin aquarium starter kit for $24.99. I've had a Topfin before so I know it's a pretty good tank. If they have it out of stock ask for a raincheck. Just wanted to share that, I'm new here so I don't have all your answers. But I do also know that you want a heater you can manually set, not one of those preset heaters.

Right now Petsmart has an awesome deal on a 5.5 gallon Topfin aquarium starter kit for $24.99. I've had a Topfin before so I know it's a pretty good tank. If they have it out of stock ask for a raincheck. Just wanted to share that, I'm new here so I don't have all your answers. But I do also know that you want a heater you can manually set, not one of those preset heaters.

haha that is the exact tank I had my eye on :D
I'm glad to know it's probably good quality since it's so cheap for such a big tank not to mention it has a filter in it

The TopFin 5.5 gallon is an awesome tank. I bought the same one from Petsmart online. The filter it comes with is a little loud though..when I first got it it was fine but after a few months it started to get really loud. I've found a way to shove a piece of cardboard in it though so the vibration of the pump, which is causing the sound, isn't as bad.